Label dispenser



R. W. FOOTE Jan. 25, 1966 LABEL DISPENSER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 3,1963 FIGZ INVENTOR.

RICHARD W FOOTE A TTORNE Y8 Jan. 25, 1966 v R. w. FOOTE 3,231,130

LABEL DISPENSER Filed Oct. 5, 1963 Z Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

RICHARD Wv FOOTE BYMJAAMQ A TTORNEYISY United States Patent 3,231,130LABEL DISPENSER Richard W. Foote, 144 Chestnut St., Willimantic, Conn.Filed Oct. 3, 1963, Ser. No. 313,680 9 Claims. (Cl. 221-70) Thisinvention relates to dispensing devices and more particularly to adevice for dispensing labels which are coated with a pressure sensitiveadhesive and are mounted on a backing or carrier strip from which theymay be peeled for use.

There is an increasing use of so-called pressure sensitive labels, thatis labels which are coated with a pressure sensitive adhesive and forpurposes of supply are mounted on a backing or carrier strip, usually awaxed paper or the like, which is supplied in coils or rolls. Whilethese labels are readily removed from the carrier strip, it is a littledifficult to remove them by hand and, therefore, various dispensers havebeen proposed and by which the strip is passed around an edge andthrough an angle so that the label will automatically peel therefrom.For the most part, however, these dispensing devices have beencomplicated in structure, involve moving parts and, therefore, areexcessively expensive as well as being subject to faulty operation andrepair.

Other types of dispensers have been somewhat simpler in construction,but have not proved completely satisfactory because the labels are notuniformly dispensed and can become adhered to the dispenser or otherwiseimproperly dispensed so that the labels are as difiicult to handle as bymanual removal from the carrier strip. Moreover, many of the prior artdispensers are limited for accommodation of a single roll only of thelabel carrying strip, whereas it is frequently desired to have aplurality of different labels readily accessible, as, for example, thepharmacist uses a variety of such labels as poison, shake well, forexternal use only and the like.

Having in mind the foregoing difficulties, it is the primary object ofthe present invention to provide a simple, inexpensive device fordispensing pressure sensitive labels accurately and neatly.

It is another object of the invention to provide a dispenser that mayaccommodate a plurality of rolls of labels whether such rolls are of thesame or different widths.

It is another object of the invention to provide a label dispenserhaving simplicity of design, economy of construction and efficiency inoperation.

The novel features that are considered characteristic of the inventionare set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The inventionitself, however, both as to its organization and its method ofoperation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, willbest be understood from the following description of specificembodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings,wherein like reference characters indicate like parts throughout theseveral figures and in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a label dispenser in accordance withthe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged cross-sectional view taken on line 3-3of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an exploded view in perspective of the device shown in FIG. 1,but in inverted position;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on theplane of FIG. 2, and showing the dispensing portion of the device andthe relative positions of the labels and backing strip in operation;

3,231,130 Patented Jan. 25, 1966 ice FIG. 6 is a view in perspective ofa portion of the device as shown in FIG. 4, but illustrating amodification thereof, and

FIG. 7 is a view in perspective of a further modification of thedispensing device.

Referring now in detail to the drawings and specifically to FIGS. 15, adispenser in accordance with the present invention comprises a housingincluding a container 10 and a closure 12 therefor for enclosing one ormore rolls R of carrier strips S having labels L mounted thereon.According to this modification, as more clearly shown in FIG. 4, thecontainer 10 comprises an open top rectangular shell, whereas theclosure 12 comprises a cover having fixed therein a plurality ofpartitions 14 which subdivide the interior of the container into aplurality of roll containing chambers between such partitions andbetween the end partitions and the side walls of the shell.

The rear edges 16 of the partitions 14 are spaced from the rear wall 18of the closure 12 a distance to accommodate the corresponding rear wall19 of the container 10, as best shown in FIG. 2, to thereby preventrelative movement between the closure and container in one direction.The lower or inner edges of the side walls 20 of the closure 12 areturned inwardly to form flanges 22 which snuggly straddle the side walls24 of the container 10 to prevent relative movement therebetween in theother direction, and the flanges 22 are adapted to engage over latchingprotrusions 26 extending from the side walls 24 to thereby retain theclosure 12 on the container 10 when in use. The principal wall 28 of theclosure 12 normally embodies the front or top wall of the dispenser, andthe rear or bottom wall 30 of the container conveniently is providedwith friction pads 32 for supporting the device on a table or bench topand also with keyhole openings 34 to enable removable mounting of thedevice on a vertical surface by means of headed studs in known manner.

For actual label dispensing, the principal wall 28 of the closure 12 isprovided with a slot 36 preferably adjacent one edge thereof throughwhich the label bearing strip S may be threaded. The slot 36 is formed,as best shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, preferably by one edge 38 of the wall 28and by a lip portion 40 extending inwardly from the main body or bightportion 44 of a U-shaped strip 42, the main body portion 44 constitutingthe fourth side wall of the closure 12 and the arms 46 of which fitwithin the side walls 20 of the closure 12, and may be secured theretoin any convenient manner depending upon the material from which thedevice is fabricated. The upper edge 41 of the front wall 43 of thecontainer 10 is spaced below the level of the top wall 28, and theclosure front wall 44 is spaced forwardly of the front wall 43 toaccommodate the lip 40, as best shown in FIG. 5.

A hold-down bar 48 is mounted on the closure 12 spaced slightly from thewall 28 to enable the free passage of the label bearing strip Sthereunder, but nevertheless retaining the strip relatively fiat againstthe wall 28. The bar 48 preferably is U-shaped with the night portion 50overlying the wall 28, and the arms 52 thereof depending against andsecured to the side walls 20 of the closure 12. Conveniently, the arms52 and arms 46 of the front wall portion 42 overlap the same portions ofthe closure side walls 20, and may be jointly secured together as byspot welding if fabricated of metal.

The bight portion 50 constitutes a flat strip parallelly spaced from theclosure wall 28, and with its leading edge 54 spaced rearwardly a slightdistance from the edge 38 of the slot 36 to preclude engagement oflabels with the bar edge 54 as they are peeled from the strip as thelatter is drawn around the slot edge 38. A pick-off bar 56 is disposedacross the closure 12 above the hold-down bar 48 to be engaged by andsupport the labels L as they are removed from the strip S. This pick-ohbar 56 constitutes a narrow strip or the like and conveniently, maycomprise an upstanding flange on the rear edge of the hold-down bightportion 50.

A second hold-down bar 58 preferably is secured on the closure 12adjacent but spaced inwardly of the rear wall 18. This bar 58 comprisesa'flat U-shaped strip having its hold-down bight portion 60 parallelwith but spaced slightly from the closure wall 28, and its end arms 62depending against and secured to the closure side walls 2%. This barserves to retain the strips S in orderly fashion on the top Wall 28 andalso as a tear-ofii bar for excess strip material.

In the foregoing modification, the partitions 14' are secured to theinner side of the top wall 28 by flanges 64 fixed to the wall 28, asshown in FIG. 3. In many cases, it may be desired to accommodate labelsof different widths as well as to enable conversion from one width toanother. For this purpose, the partitions may be removably' mounted inthe closure 12, and one suitable arrangement is shown in FIG. 6 whereintheflanges 64' of the partitions 14 are secured to a plate 66' havingone edge portion 66a removably inserted under an inwardly extendingflange 68 on one side wall 20' of the closure 12", the opposite edgeportion 66b of the plate 66 being releasably retained by a protrusion70extending inwardly from the opposite closure side Wall 20'.

With the foregoing arrangement, the partitions 14' may be selectivelypositioned on a plate 66 to accommodate rolls of different widths. Theuser may have a plurality of plates 66 with the partitions 14'differently spaced thereon so that the dispenser can be modifiedaccording to the widths of the rolls and labels to be used at thatparticular time. One plate 66 may be removed by springing the one sidewall 20' outwardly to release the plate edge 6612 from the protrusion 70so that the plate edge 66b can be swung upwardly until free of theadjacent side wall and then slid laterally to remove the edge portion6611 from under the flange 68. An alternate plate 66 can then beinserted by reverse operation, or in lieu thereof, roll containingcartons may be placed in the dispenser.

In the use and operation of the dispenser hereinbefore described, thedevice is placed in inverted position, as shown in FIG. 4, and the sidewalls 24 of the container are sprung inwardly to free the protrusions26' from the closure flanges 22 so that the container 10' can be removedfrom the closure 12 or 12. Rolls R of strips S carrying labels L arethen placed in the respective compartments formed by the partitions 14or 14', and the leading end of the strips S conveniently inserted underthe 1ip'40 and through the slot 36 at this time. Even though theinverted closure 12 or 12' may be resting on a flat surface, thepick-off bar 56 spaces the front of the closure above such surface sothat the leading ends of the strips may readily be inserted through theslot 36, and the lip 40 serves as a guide to facilitate feeding the leadends of the strips through the slot. The container 10 is then placed onthe closure 12 or 12 and pressed down until the protrusions 26 snapunder the flanges 22.

When the dispenser is loaded and closed, it is then turned upright andthe lead ends of the strips S are threaded under the hold-down bar 48.This threading operation is facilitated by the spacing between the slotedge 38 and the adjacent edge 54 of the hold-down bar because the leadend of a strip may be engaged with the top wall 28 in front of thehold-down bar edge 54 and the strip then pushed downwardly andrearwardly so that its leading edge slides on the wall 28 and under thebar In like manner, the lead end of the strip can be threaded under therear hold-down bar 60. When all of the strips are threaded, a label Lcan be removed from each of the strips and mounted on the front wall 43of the container in alignment with its respective strip to identify thelocation of the particular labels.

I operator.

After the device is loaded and threaded as described above, it is readyfor use. An operator may obtain a selected label by pressing theparticular strip S against the wall 28 behind the front hold-down bar 48and sliding the strip toward the rear hold-down bar 58, thus pulling thestrip from the container and over the slot edge 38. As the portion ofthe strip S within the container approaches the slot 36, it and a labelL thereon, FIG. 5, engage the lip 40 and are held thereby in a planesubstantially perpendicular to the wall 28 so that the strip is bentsubstantially ninety degrees as it passes over the slot edge 38 andunder the hold-down bar 50.

As the strip S passes over the slot edge 38, the label L is held by thelip 46 perpendicular to the wall 28 so that the inherent stiffness ofthe label causes its leading edge to peer from the strip as it iswithdrawn from the con tainer. The label being dispensed cannot engageor become snagged on the adjacent edge '54 of the hold-down bar 50 whichwould foul the proper dispensing operation because the edge 54' isspaced rearwardly of the slot edge 38. However, as the trailing'edge ofthe label L passes beyond the lip 40, the lack of support by the lip andthe movement of the strip S cause the label L to tilt toward thehold-down'bar 48, and engage the pick-oif bar 56 just as the trailingedge of the label separates from the strip. The label is held on thepick-off bar 56 by its adhesive backing and is readily available in thisposition to the The excess portion of the strip S may be removed by theoperator holding the strip against the wall 28 and pulling the excessupwardly against the rear edge of the rear hold-down bar 58.

Another modification of the invention is shown in FIG. 7 as comprising acontainer 116' and a closure 112, but in this case, the container isopen at its front andthe closure constitutes the front wall and isattached to the lower front portion of the container by a hinge 111. Thetop wall 128 is integral 'with the container with the rear hold-down bar158 mounted thereon, whereas the front hold-down bar 148, including thepick-off bar 156, and the lip are carried by arms 146 extendingrearwardly from the sides at the top of the closure 112 and which areadaptedto overlie the side walls 1240f the container. Latch elements126, such as protrusions, are provided on the container side walls 124and cooperating latch elements 122, such as openings to mate with theprotrusions, are provided on the arms 146. The slot forming edge 138 ofthe top Wall 128 is spaced rearwardly of the front of the container 110'to accommodate the hp 146.

The container 110 may have partitions 14 or l4positioned therein or, asshown, they may be omitted for reception of cartons C respectivelycontaining individual rolls of label bearing strips S, the cartonshaving openings' O in their upper front corners for the dispensing ofthe strip and labels therefrom. In accordance with this modification,the closure 112 is swung open after springing the arms 146 to releasethe latch elements 122, 126, and rolls or cartons C of strips S areinserted in the container 110 with the lead ends of the strips extendingin front of the edge 138 and above the wall 128.

The closure 112 is then swung closed until the latch elements 122, 126engage and, in this closing movement, the front hold-down bar 148 swingsover the top wall 128, and automatically traps the strips S therebetweenso that the strips have to be threaded only under the rear hold-down bar158. In all other respects, the structural relation of the parts and thedispensing operation are the same as previously described with respectto the modification of FIGS. 15.

Although certain specific embodiments of the invention have been shownand described, it is obvious that many modifications thereof arepossible. The invention, therefore, is not to be restricted exceptinsofar as is necessitated by the prior art and by the spirit of theappended claims.

That which is claimed is:

1. A label dispenser comprising a housing for enclosing a coiled carrierstrip on which labels coated with pressure sensitive adhesive aremounted, said housing having a wall means provided with a dispensingslot, said slot having spaced opposing bounding edges, a hold-down barprovided on said housing in overlying relation to said wall meansparallel to the slot and having a leading edge spaced from the slot anddisposed adjacent one edge of said slot, said hold-down bar beingparallel to and spaced slightly from said wall means to accommodate freepassage of the carrier strip therebetween but to retain the stripsubstantially parallel with said wall means, the other edge of said slotcomprising a lip disposed inwardly of the plane of said wall means andhaving a strip-engaging edge portion lying slightly below and arrangedcomplementary to the one edge of the slot and being substantiallyparallel with said one edge of the slot, said li-p edge portion and theone edge of the slot being disposed in planes substantiallyperpendicular to said wall means and spaced apart substantially thethickness of the label-bearing strip, the leading edge of said hold-downbar nearest said slot being spaced slightly away from said one edge ofthe slot to preclude engagement of said leading bar edge by labels asthey are peeled from the strip when the strip passes over said slotedge, and a pick-off bar disposed above and substantially parallel withsaid hold-down bar and spaced rearwardly of said leading edge of saidholddown bar, said pick-01f bar having a narrow edge-like surfaceparallel to the Wall means to be engaged by a label peeled from thestrip, whereby the label-bearing strip is positioned substantiallyperpendicularly of said Wall means by said lip portion and bentsubstantially ninety degrees as it passes over said one edge of the slotand under said hold-down bar to cause a label thereon to peel from thestrip as the latter is moved through the ninety degree angle so that thelabel is lodged on the edge-like surface of said ick-01f bar.

2. A label dispenser according to claim 1 wherein said hold-down bar isconstituted by one flange of an L-shaped member with the free edge ofsaid flange constituting the bar edge adjacent said slot, the otherflange of said member constituting said pick-oftbar and extendingupwardly from the rear edge of said one flange with the free edge ofsaid other flange constituting said label engaging edge.

3. A label dispenser according to claim 2 wherein said lip edge portionwhich engages the label-bearing strip is rounded to preclude dislodgmentof the leading edge of a label as it passes thereover.

4. A label dispenser according to claim 3 comprising a second hold-downbar substantially parallel to said first mentioned hold-down bar andspaced from said wall for passage of the strip therebetween.

5. A label dispenser according to claim 4 wherein said housing is of awidth to accommodate a plurality of coils of label-bearing strips withsaid slot extending transversely thereof to permit passage of the stripsin side-by-side relation, said housing comprising a casing having anopen side, and a closure including said slotted wall, said closurehaving a plurality of inwardly extending parallel partitions subdividingsaid easing into compartments for individually receiving the coils oflabel-bearing strips.

'6. A label dispenser according to claim 5 wherein said partitions areattached to a carrier member which is releasably secured in said closureagainst the inner side of said wall.

7. A label dispenser according to claim 4 wherein said housing is of awidth to accommodate a plurality of coils of label-bearing strips withsaid slot extending transversely thereof to permit passage of the stripsin side-by-side relation, said housing comprising a casing having anopen side, the wall means having a free edge constituting said one edgeof the slot, and a closure for said casing closing off the open side andhaving said lip extending inwardly along one edge portion thereof.

8. A label dispenser according to claim 7 wherein said hold-down andpick-0fi bars are carried by said closure.

9. A label dispenser according to claim 1 wherein said housing comprisesa casing having an open side and a closed side defining the wall means,the free edge of the closed side of said casing constituting said oneslot edge, and a hinged closure for said casing and having an angularextension complementary to and completing the closed side and havingsaid lip extending inwardly along the free end portion thereof.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,341,368 2/1944Flood 221 X 2,887,247 5/1959 Williams 31239 X 2,912,140 11/1959 Cole22l-70 FOREIGN PATENTS 677,070 8/ 1952 Great Britain.

LOUIS I. DEMBO, Primary Examiner.

HADD S. LANE, Examiner.

1. A LABEL DISPENSER COMPRISING A HOUSING FOR ENCLOSING A COILED CARRIERSTRIP ON WHICH LABELS COATED WITH PRESSURE SENSITIVE ADHESIVE AREMOUNTED, SAID HOUSING HAVING A WALL MEANS PROVIDED WITH A DISPENSINGSLOT, SAID SLOT HAVING SPACED OPPOSING BOUNDING EDGES, A HOLD-DOWN BARPROVIDED ON SAID HOUSING IN OVERLYING RELATION TO SAID WALL MEANSPARALLEL TO THE SLOT AND HAVING A LEADING EDGE SPACED FROM THE SLOT ANDDISPOSED ADJACNET ONE EDGE OF SAID SLOT, SAID HOLD-DOWN BAR BEINGPARALLEL TO AND SPACED SLIGHTLY FROM SAID WALL MEANS TO ACCOMMODATE FREEPASSAGE OF THE CARRIER STRIP THEREBETWEEN BUT TO RETAIN THE STRIPSUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL WITH SAID WALL MEANS, THE OTHER EDGE OF SAID SLOTCOMPRISING A LIP DISPOSED INWARDLY OF THE PLANE OF SAID WALL MEANS ANDHAVING A STRIP-ENGAGING EDGE PORTION LYING SLIGHTLY BELOW AND ARRANGEDCOMPLEMENTARY TO THE ONE EDGE OF THE SLOT AND BEING SUBSTANTIALLYPARALLEL WITH SAID ONE EDGE OF THE SLOT, SAID LIP EDGE PORTION AND THEONE EDGE OF THE SLOT BEING DISPOSED IN PLANES SUBSTANTIALLYPERPENDICULAR TO SAID WALL MEANS AND SPACED APART SUBSTANTIALLY THETHICKNESS OF THE LABEL-BEARING STRIP, THE LEADING EDGE OF SAID HOLD-DOWNBAR NEAREST SAID SLOT BEING SPACED SLIGHTLY AWAY FROM SAID ONE EDGE OFTHE SLOT TO PRECLUDE ENGAGEMENT OF SAID LEADING BAR EDGE BY LABELS ASTHEY ARE PEELED FROM THE STRIP WHEN THE STRIP PASSES OVER SAID SLOTEDGE, AND A PICK-OFF BAR DISPOSED ABOVE AND SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL WITHSAID HOLD-DOWN BAR AND SPACED REARWARDLY OF SAID LEADING EDGE OF SAIDHOLDDOWN BAR, SAID PICK-OFF BAR HAVING A NARROW EDGE-LIKE SURFACEPARALLEL TO THE WALL MEANS TO BE ENGAGED BY A LABEL PEELED FROM THESTIP, WHEREBY THE LABEL-BEARING STRIP IS POSITIONED SUBSTANTIALLYPERPENDICULARLY OF SAID WALL MEANS BY SAID LIP PORTION AND BENTSUBSTANTIALLY NINETY DGREES AS IT PASSES OVER SAID ONE EDGE OF THE SLOTAND UNDER SAID HOLD-DOWN BAR TO CAUSE A LABEL THEREON TO PEEL FROM THESTRIP AS THE LATTER IS MOVED THROUGH THE NINETY DEGREE ANGLE SO THAT THELABEL IS LODGED ON THE EDGE-LIKE SURFACE OF SAID PICK-OFF BAR.